Exercise 1: Online and local library visits for Identifying Reference Sources and Reference Services Rebecca Coates ILS 504: Reference and Information Resources and Services Dr. Sche February 14, 2011 Internet Public Library Ready Reference site list Almanac Infoplease: All the Knowledge You Need Online version of the popular almanac. Provides a wealth of facts, resources, and activities on a variety of subjects. An encyclopedia, almanac, dictionary, thesaurus, and atlas, all in one! Includes the Random House Websters College Dictionary and the Columbia Encyclopedia. Associations & Organizations Idealist.org A searchable directory of nearly 50,000 nonprofit organizations in over 160 countries. Individuals can find jobs, volunteer opportunities, internships, programs, campaigns, and events. Nonprofit and community-based organizations can find consultants, freelancers, and other resources. Available in English, Spanish, and French. Biographies Famous Adoptees and Foster Children "Biographical directory of influential and famous persons who were adopted or spent time being raised by people other than their biological parents." Calculation & Conversion Tools Convertworld Convertworld is a unit conversion website. Currency can be calculated for 36 different countries. The date cane also be changed to reflect the most current value of the currencies. Other conversion areas are: length, temperature, weight, data storages, area, energy, pressure, speed, volume, and time. Calendars The World Clock The current time at over 500 locations worldwide. It can be customized to show only the cities you want. Census Data & Demographics United Nations Population Information Network Contains information about World population trends and Regional Population Information and Networking. Dictionaries Phrasebase Language Learning Resources Phrasebase is a conversational language learning resource center and community. It has an online phrasebook with words and phrases translated into over 90 different languages, as well as country information, language information, and information for language exchange pen pals. Encyclopedias History of Philosophy A large collection of online essays and web resources. Essay topics include Camus, institutional suicide of Chinese Buddhism, and Ayn Rand. The encyclopedia of web resources covers the following areas of Western philosophy: Ancient Greek, Hellenistic, Late Antiquity, Mediaeval, and Modern. Experts & How-To Howcast An extensive online video library of how-to videos. Some examples include: how to knit socks, how to play the bass guitar, how to improve your focus, how to score big at yard sales, how to use social media to boost your brainpower, plus "quick tip" videos such as how to get a song out of your head, how to get rid of ants, and how to open a stuck jar. Genealogy Genealogy Buff Genealogy Buff is a free genealogy website designed especially for novice researchers of genealogical information. Its key features include a thorough surname search tool and an easily navigable homepage organized by topics that link to both free and subscription based genealogy websites. Geography Yale University Map Collection "The Map Collection has the largest collection of maps in Connecticut and one of the largest university collections in the United States. Its collections are geographically comprehensive and consist of over 200,000 map sheets, 3,000 atlases, and 900 reference books. The Collection also houses approximately 15,000 rare (pre-1850) sheet maps." Grammars Latin Dictionary and Grammar Aid Search for English definitions of 15,600 Latin words. There is also an accompanying alphabetical wordlist and grammar aid, with examples of translations for the various uses of several noun cases, and the endings for regular nouns, adjectives, active verbs, and present participles. News & Current Events/ Australian Newspapers on the Internet Comprehensive list of links to Australian newspapers online. Part of the National Library of Australia Internet Subject Lists project. Periodical Directories/ Alternative Press Index This website is "dedicated to providing access to and increasing public awareness of the alternative press." It contains a directory of publications indexed in the Alternative Press Index with information such as publisher, editors, circulation, subscription cost, URL and contact information for each entry. Quotations The Quotations Archive "The Quotations Archive is a comprehensive, searchable database of general purpose quotations. Visitors to the web site can browse through quotations by subject, alphabetically by author, or they can use the search engine to generate a listing of quotations containing selected keywords or by a certain author." Style & Writing Guides Son of Citation Machine Does the thought of putting your resources into proper citation form scare you, then you should check out this site. This site has you enter title, author, etc., and it will put them into proper APA, MLA, or Turabian format. Telephone & Address WhitePages.com Search for people or businesses in this online directory from WhitePages, Inc. Includes a reverse lookup feature to search for person or business names based on phone number or address. Also features online promotions and links to international directory resources. Formerly known as Click411.com. Time & Weather The Weather Channel The WWW version of cable TV's Weather Channel. Current weather information and forecasting for the United States are easily accessed. This site also offers educational resources, such as the "weather classroom." Weather news, advisories and facts of interest are available, as is the Weather Channel's TV schedule. Trivia FunTrivia.com : the Trivia Website A collection of trivia fun, including an encyclopedia of trivia, thousands of quizzes, hundreds of crosswords, links to interactive trivia public competitions, questions for designing your own trivia tournament, and user forums. FunTrivia.com bills itself as the "World's Largest Trivia and Quiz Site." Titles found in the Reference Collection of Miller Memorial Library, Hamden, in the same categories as those listed above Almanac Facts Plus: an Almanac of Essential Information Anthony, Susan C. Instructional Resources Co. 1992 REF/032/ANT Associations Encyclopedia of Associations Gale Research Co. 2005 REF/061.3/En19 2005 Biographies The Columbia Dictionary of Political Biography Columbia University Press 1991 REF/920.02/COL Calculations & Conversions Two-way Conversion Tables of Units of Weights and Measures, Metric and United States Customary Le Maraic, A.L. Abbey Books 1953 Calendars Dictionary of Dates compiled by Robert Collison Collison, Robert Lewis Greenwood Press 1969, c. 1961 902/C697d (REF) Census & Demographics Population Characteristics United States Bureau of the Census Washington, Dept. of Commerce, Bureau of the Census 312/UN35p v.089 Dictionaries A Guide to 25 Languages of Europe Lyall, Archibald Stackpole 1966, c. 1932 413/L89g Encyclopedia The World Book Encyclopedia World Book 2009 READY REF/031/WOR Genealogy The Archives: a Guide to the National Archives Field Branches Szucs, Loretta Kathryn Dennis Ancestry Pub. 1988 016.978/Sz71a (REF) Periodical Directory Magazines for Libraries Bowker 1969011.34/MAG Quotations Chambers Dictionary of Quotations Ed. Alison Jones Chambers 1997 REF/808.8/CHA Style & Writing Guides The Chicago Manual of Style The University of Chicago Press 2010 REF/808.027/CHI Trivia The Trivia Encyclopedia Smith, Logan Pearsall Harcourt Brace & Company 1974 031.02/W899t (REF) There is one listing for “indexes”, an e-reference. The information for “indexes” is as follows: The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire [electronic resource] Gibbon, Edward 1737-1794 Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation 2008 The History Of The Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire [electronic resource] Salt Lake City : Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, 2008. Notes: Weblink: Additional Author: F v R IS A h 7 G a There is no listing for “abstracts” Categories for which titles with call numbers were not found in Miller Memorial Library, Hamden Expert & How-To Geography Grammars New & Current Events - Hamden subscribes to a number of newspapers and magazines, but the newspapers are not cataloged and the magazines are part of the circulating collection Telephone and Address – Local yellow and white pages are located behind the reference desk, but are not cataloged and so have no call numbers Time & Weather An interview with a professional reference librarian I interviewed Elisabeth, a reference librarian at Miller Memorial Library. a. Elisabeth identified ten user groups at Miller Memorial Library. The age groups identified were adults, young adults (adolescents), children, and senior citizens. Students were designated as a separate user group, and users originally from countries other than the US were discussed as a user group while discussing a later question. The user groups for whom programming is most often offered are families who attend story time, who are divided into three user groups based on the age of the children attending. Other programs are offered for young adults and businesspeople, as well as a book discussion group open to all ages. b. The user group that most often uses the library’s reference services is adults. The adults who use the reference services are of all backgrounds and education levels. Their reference needs are often help with computers, help with locating books, audiobooks, and seasonal information like tax forms, as well as help finding addresses. c. The reference services offered are mostly Ready Reference and one-on-one help with computers, as needed. Elisabeth told me we “don’t offer classes because of staffing, and also there’s no room”. Hamden’s senior center is located next door to Miller Library. The two even share a lobby and public restrooms. If senior citizens want to take a class in order to learn computer skills, the reference staff refers them to the senior center. d. Questions and answers are asked and answered in person, over the telephone, or through e-mail, but not by instant messaging. Other queries, such as interlibrary loan requests made by librarians outside Hamden, are sometimes received through Fax message. e. Hamden libraries do not participate in any cooperative library reference services. Like other Connecticut libraries, they were part of InfoAnytime until that service was cut from the Connecticut libraries budget two years ago. Elisabeth also talked to me about Hamden Libraries’ online presence. We have a Facebook page, a Twitter (TotemTom), and a blog, through which we provide information to our patrons without being asked. This allows us to promote our programs and seasonal displays, as well as our expertise. Facebook also provides an opportunity for positive feedback from our patrons and the community at large.